Read more about the history of vinegar in the book length history, Vinegar, The Eternal Condiment By the end of World War II, the original industrialized process for making vinegar, the packed generator quick process of Schüzenbach, had been the dominant mode of industrial production for over one hundred years. While relatively rapid compared to traditional methods, one to two … Read More
Composition of non-brewed condiment
Image from Wikimedia; photo by Matthias Meckel Ah, what would fish and chips be without malt vinegar non-brewed condiment? Non-brewed condiment is more quintessentially British than even malt vinegar since while malt vinegar is produced and sold here in the US and other places, non-brewed condiment has a much more limited range of geographies where it can be sold since … Read More
Making white distilled (spirit/alcohol) vinegar at home
White distilled vinegar, the workhorse of home canners/picklers and DIY cleaners around the world. Not known for its culinary subtlety it is still the largest vinegar produced and sold by far, with the majority of sales actually being bulk shipments to other food manufacturers such as those making ketchup, mustard, pickles, sauces, etc. Most home vinegar makers don’t endeavor to … Read More
The Great Vinegar Regions of the World
There are many great wine regions of the world from France to California to South Africa to Australia. Likewise, there are many great olive oil producing regions, many in the Mediterranean but also in California and other regions as well. What are the great regions for vinegar though? Vinegar is often mass produced but some regions retain a title as … Read More
The ‘Eternal Condiment’ arrives!
The first book length history of vinegar has now arrived! Available on Amazon the Eternal Condiment is a work almost five years in the making documenting the rise of vinegar from prehistory to the current crazes for balsamic and raw apple cider vinegar! Much of the historical information on this blog derived from research for this book. Get your copy … Read More
Introducing gluten free malt vinegar
Gluten Free Malt Vinegar – a new product of Supreme Vinegar About me and my passion for vinegar I’m Reggie Smith, owner of Supreme Vinegar LLC, a specialty fruit and wine vinegar manufacturing company in Bensalem, PA just outside of Philadelphia. In the past, I have mainly concentrated on fruit vinegars and mothers of vinegar to help home vinegar hobbyists … Read More
Tips on aging vinegar
For those who have made their own vinegar, or have bought some they want to age and refine, aging vinegar is the easy part though patience is a must. Vinegar can age almost indefinitely if stored right. Traditional Chinese vinegars are aged 3-6 years, traditional Balsamic is aged from 12-25 years and sherry vinegar can be aged for similar long … Read More
Mother or SCOBY?
This is a quick post to clarify some confusion I have run into from a lot of home fermenters. The rise of the popularity of kombucha has brought the notion of the SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast ) to name the thick gelatinous mass that sits on top of kombucha fermentations. Before this the more widely known and … Read More
From Alegar to Sarson’s: A History of Malt Vinegar
Read the full book on the history of vinegar, Vinegar, The Eternal Condiment available on Amazon! My article on the history of malt vinegar appeared in the 113th issue of Petits Propos Culinaires published by Prospect Books. Download below. Please cite as: Smith, RD (2019). From Alegar to Sarson’s: A History of Malt Vinegar. Petits Propos Culinaires, 113, 95-119. Additional … Read More
A history of the Canadian vinegar industry
The following is taken in part from my book on vinegar history, Vinegar, The Eternal Condiment available on Amazon! When people here in the US think Canadian vinegar one might have an amusing notion of a barrel of maple vinegar fermenting in some snowy, remote lodge in Northern Ontario. While Canada is obviously a leader in maple vinegar production (though … Read More